Mississippi's seven electoral votes gave Jimmy Carter the margin he needed early this morning to become the 39th President of the United States.

As of 4 a.m. today, Carter had captured 272 electoral votes--270 are necessary for election--to President Ford's 178.

Carter led with 51 per cent of the popular vote to give him a 2 million vote edge over Ford. At press time, Carter had received 36,418,120 votes to Ford's 34,407,672.

Eugene McCarthy, an independent candidate, garnered only 1 per cent of the popular vote with 373,572.

Carter, in an acceptance speech delivered this morning at his Atlanta, Ga., headquarters, told supporters, "This tremendous crowd at 4 a.m. in the morning represents hundreds of millions of American people who are now ready to see our nation unified."

"I pray that I can live up to your confidence and never disappoint you," he said.

Carter praised Ford as a "good and decent man."

Walter Mondale, in an acceptance speech delivered from Minneapolis, said he feels "so honored to be the vice president with one of the greatest men in American history. President Carter is going to be one of the greatest presidents in American history," he added.

The White House announced that Ford had gone to bed earlier in the evening.

In an election too close to call until the early morning hours, Carter chalked up his greatest successes in the South. Black voters in particular were considered to have been crucial to Carter's victories there.

The former Georgia governor managed to win the necessary electoral votes without winning a single state west of the Mississippi River with the exception of Texas.

Although at 6 a.m. results indicated that Carter may win California, the electoral votes would not be needed.

As the polls began to close across the country last night Carter got off to an early lead, primarily as a result of decisive Southern victories.

But returns from other parts of the country, particularly in the East and Midwest, created a tensely close race that seemed in doubt for Carter until the early morning hours.

Carter's first break out of the South came at about 11 p.m. when Pennsylvania's 27 electoral votes and Texas's 26 were put into his column. Pennsylvania was also the first major industrial state to register heavily for Carter.